a bit of lippy

Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupté Review

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 18 Oct 2013 18:27:00 +0000

The Rouge Volupté lipsticks collection by Yves Saint Laurent have been out for quite some years now and today I thought I'd share my thoughts on the one I have which is number 27 Rose Paris, as I've had it quite awhile now and these are quite on the pricey side so I can give you guys my honest opinion.

Since the release of Rouge Volupté there are newer additions such as the Rouge Volupté Sheer Candy which is more of light sheer flush of colour to the lips and less of a lipstick type finish. And then there's the newest addition which is the Rouge Volupté Shine which is probably a middle ground of the three ranges, a very glossy finish but still opaque enough to be a lipstick.

So you ready to hear the price? Here it is...these little numbers come in at around 31.90 (euros) here in France so I'm guessing it's around the end of the 20's mark in pounds, I know pretty expensive! Now the price shock is over I can move on to tell you why/why not it's worth it. If you are looking for a luxurious lipstick then look no further. We all love our drugstores lipsticks which we could by nearly 3 of for the price of one of these but this definitely has a certain "je ne sais quoi" as the french would say. First of all these lipsticks glide onto your lips like butter, they are so creamy it's really hard not to fall in love with it when you first try it. I have the shade Rose Paris which I think is a very misleading name for this colour as to me it's an almost neon coral/pink shade whereas "Rose Paris" sounds more like a dusky pink, but anywayy I'll let that one slide. I would recommend testing the shades in store before you buy anything if you can find these cheaper online.

The colour is very opaque, you really only need one coat to get full impact of the colour, which is a plus as they will last that little bit extra. They have an spf of 15 which I personally like and find that they are very hydrating to the lips, if you have any dryness they don't attract any unwanted attention to those areas.

The colour range is quite generous, there are plenty of nudes to pink to coral and deep plum shades to chose from in the collection. I would say however that because they are so butter-like on the lips that you have to be careful when applying and maybe use a lip brush to get nice and precise lines. The lipstick does stay put once applied and has a sheen finish, but if you blot your lips you can get more of a matte finish. The lasting power is very good on the one I have, you might only need to reapply once during the day to keep the colour as after about 4 hours it does fade a little but still leaves a stain on the lips.

Overall, I think if you're looking to treat yourself to a really special lipstick with a great formula and beautiful packaging that makes you happy to take out of your handbag to reapply then the Rouge Volupté is definitely worth it.

I'd love to hear if you've tried any of the Rouge Volupté ranges too, and if not do you think you might give them a try?

See you soon!

Perfume Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 20:38:00 +0000

Now that I've acquired more than two perfumes at the same time I thought hey this could count as a perfume collection! Some are old favourites but I've introduced a few new flames lately that are equally loved and I just had the urge to share them with you. Because who doesn't want to smell good ey?

Lola by Marc Jacobs - Now I have featured this in a post before, last Christmas I think, and just looking at the bottle now I'm realising how long this is lasting! For me this is my favourite scent from the Marc Jacobs range, I have had a whiff of Daisy which is very popular on the blogosphere (and does smell gorgeous) but i think Lola will always be the one for me (I feel like I'm really talking about someone called Lola, just the perfume you guys! not a real woman...awkward haha). I'm just going to say it, this scent is SEXY, I feel like it's a very deep and rich scent that is definitely more sophisticated and sensual than light and fresh Daisy. I would also say it is more of a night time perfume.
Tones: pink peppercorn, pear d’anjou, ruby red grapefruit, fuchsia peony, rose, geranium, vanilla, tonka bean and creamy musk.

O d'AZUR by Lancome - This is a staple perfume in my collection which you can see as it is nearly all gone. I will definitely be repurchasing this when it runs out and I'll tell you why ladies. This is such an easy perfume to wear, it isn't over powering and just compliments your own fragrance. It's so light and fresh with it's slightly sweet but mainly floral tones, which makes it beautifully feminine and really an all rounder. My only gripe is that I don't find the scent lasts all day on me, you may need to keep spritzing during the day but it is fairly handbag friendly.

Si by Giorgio Armani - A recent addition to my perfume collection which isn't a scent I'd normally go for, but loving nonetheless is Si. It is definitely signature of the Giorgio Armani range by it's scent, very chic and modern. When I smell this perfume I find it has a very warm and "feel-good" smell that's also quite comforting (maybe because my sister had the Emporio Armani perfume which was "her scent" for years which makes this quite nostalgic for me). Not to mention the bottle! it's so beautiful (am I really describing a bottle beautiful? think the perfume has gone to my head) and a perfect little decoration on the top of a dresser, which could be a reason alone to buy it. Although I do still think the lid looks like a little coffee bean.

La vie est belle by Lancome - Life is beautiful says Lancome and I couldn't agree more! The best way I can describe this perfume is, it's elegant. As you probably all saw, there was so much advertising for La vie est belle when it was launched that I have to say I did get a little swept into it. Did you guys see the add with Julia Roberts, ohh em gee she looks amazing, I love the part where she breaks out of the diamond strings and I'm like yeah gurl you do your thang! haha. Anywayy, back on to the scent! it does have deep tones but still quite light making this a day to night time perfume, a girly sweet scent that carries blackcurrant vanilla as its main tones.
Tones: blackcurrant, pear,iris, jasmine, orange blossom,tonka bean, vanilla, praline, patchouli.

Miss Dior Chérie Eau de Toilette by Christian Dior - This is a very special scent, I don't know why but I feel so Parisienne when I wear this perfume. Picturing myself sipping coffee reading a book in a little café by le tour eiffel, ohh la la !! It has such a unique smell that is really like nothing else I've smelt before, Dior you doing it right! At first when you spray it, it has a very strong alcohol smell but when it dries on the skin it releases a beautiful fruity musky scent. This is also a day to night perfume and I'd say it's a younger scent to the rest for the perfumes I've talked about on this post.
Tones: pineapple, cherry, strawberry, mandarin, popcorn, caramel, jasmine,rose, violet, patchouli, musk, amber.

I hope you guys liked this post, sorry I'm a bit rusty! As always I love to hear from you, so feel free to leave a comment on your favourite perfumes I'm always on the hunt for something new to try :)

Match made in eyelash heaven, They're Real! Benefit Mascara & Sephora Eyelash Curlers.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 27 May 2013 13:11:00 +0000

I've been meaning to put up this post for, well, a long-ass time now! (excuse my french) And as someone who has been on a mission to find a mascara to lengthen my short-pointy eyelashes, I think I can say, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

I bought the They're Real! Benefit mascara awhile ago now after reading a lot of good reviews about this product. So one day whilst impulse buying (nothing new there!) I picked it up along with a Sephora eyelash curler. When I got home and tested this combo out I literally was beaming with excitement as a walked in the living room fluttering my eyelashes to Clément asking does he notice anything new (us girls love to keep our man on his toes with the "notice anything new?" test haha).

Normally I'm not a fan of plastic/rubber wands but this one leaves just enough product on your lashes without clumping and separates them nicely. It really added the extra "wow" factor to my usually short and straight eyelashes and kept the curl from the Sephora eyelash curler in really well. If you are like me and have quite straight lashes I would definitely say curl your lashes for maximum effect with this product.

It's a little steep at €24 but definitely worth it if you're looking for the long lashes you've always dreamed of!

See you soon!

How To: Style Short Hair

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 04 May 2013 16:09:00 +0000

HI THERE ! Want to know how to recreate this messy mop? Read on!

Last week I went to the hair dresser and got more than a couple of inches cut off, I wasn't exactly Rapunzel or anything, my hair was just below the shoulder but to us girls even an inch of hair from the "split ends" can be traumatic (why is it so hard to part with it?). I know I definitely leave that trip to the hair dressers to the very last minute, when my hair just takes the form of a monster on my head and no hair straightener, serum, brush, clips and bits can rule the beast. Okay I think I might by slightly over doing it here, but when my hair gets that unruly and stubborn, I do tend to talk about it as if another creature stuck to my head. The day before I went to the hair dresser I started to slightly panic as I didn't know what I wanted. I started looking for photos to bring with me, as my francais isn't exactly fluent, I wasn't taking any risks! Here's what I found and thought, to hell with it, chop the beast off!

I brought this photo in with me to the hairdresser from the latest edition of Glamour magazine, love the super cute heart dress too, unfortunately it doesn't come with the hair cut *sigh*. Although the model in this photo is stunningly beautiful, I think this hair cut would suit a lot of people. If your hair has a natural kink and you're looking for something easy to maintain, then I think this could be for you too. I love how this hair cut is just to the jawline as it really shows of the neck in a pretty, feminine way. I also love how long earrings get showed off a little more too with this cut. It's a win win situation.

More onto the point though, how to style this look? well it's super easy! If your into big hair with lots of volume then look no further.

At the moment my hair routine consists of the Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly shampoo and conditioner and after the shower I put in a large pump of the L'oreal Kérastase Elixir Ultime serum (that's a mouthful!) that my sister gave me to try out (it smells beautiful and leaves hair soft but not weighed down, thanks Anna!). And then I only half blow dry my hair, leaving it a little to dry naturally.

I then use my Remington hair straighteners to put a loose curl in my hair, they are so old now but they get the job done, so I can't complain! I work my way from the very back to the front pieces of hair throughout each layer.

I always curl my hair in layers, it's a lot easier to do as I always miss pieces of hair in the back if I don't. I lightly spray my hair with the Toni & Guy Firm Hold hairspray as I do each layer, making sure the curl doesn't drop too much along the way.

When I'm finished curling all of my hair I gently pull my fingers through, teasing the curls apart to give a more natural wave. Finally I rub the roots of my hair with my fingers to give extra volume and give a final spritz of hairspray.

I normally would just leave my hair like this, leaving those wavy curls bouncy and wild, but for more of a sophisticated look I like to twist a little piece of my hair from the front, on the side where my fringe doesn't fall and pin it back with a clip, like the flower one below.

I don' know why I'm stretching my neck out like a giraffe, but I told you guys I can't pose!

Gotta love a blurry photo! never know what the iphone shots are gonna give ya.

And there we go, that's my how to style short hair! Let me know if you guys find this helpful in anyway or if you have any suggestions for me on how you style your short hair, I love reading all your lovely comments :) Also if you have any hair products you think I should try out, please tell me! I'm always up for new things to try.

See you soon beauties!

Smoothie Friday!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 03 May 2013 11:12:00 +0000

On Wednesday me and Clément went out to buy Holly (our dog) some food and came back with a smoothie maker and waffle machine. Needless to say we got slightly distracted at our local electrical appliance store! Some people could say it was impulsive, but life is starting to feel a little more complete now the waffle machine is around. The excitement of coming home with all these new kitchen gadgets was hard to contain, so not long before I plugged in the smoothie maker, that baby was being put into action!

Here is the the recipe for my oh so scrumptious banana, pineapple and strawberry smoothie! If these pictures don't send those healthy vibes through your computer screen and make you want to make this, then I don't know what will ;)

You will need:

2 bananas
Handful or two of strawberries
Half a pineapple
Around 3/4 table spoons of natural yogurt
Table spoon of Honey
And a splash of orange juice

Prep all your delicious fruit by chopping everything into small chunks. I'd recommend not using the core of the pineapple as it doesn't blend too well in smoothie machine, and we don't want to ruin your smoothie after all that hard work chopping!

You can use any juice you have lying around if you wan't to, I just had this "le pur jus d'orange avec pulpe" in my frigo so I poured a little of that vitamin C goodness into the mix.

Pop everything into the machine, on goes the lid and get blitzing! I used a pot of greek yogurt I had in the fridge with honey already in it, so if your feeling lazy like me that'll work fine.

ET VOILA! Quick, fruity smoothie that contains your five portions of fruit for the day! This makes about 4 glasses of smoothie so just pop it in the fridge for later when you feel a bit peckish but wan't something healthy :)

Let me know if you give this a whirl! And if you like these sort of posts, I thought I'd try branch out a little since beauty is all in our food too ;)

Liebster Award (again!) & Versatile Blogger Award

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:32:00 +0000

The rules of the Liebster Award are:

1. Thank your Liebster Award presenter on your blog

2. Link back to the blogger who presented the award to you

3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.

4. Present the Liebster Award to 5 blogs of 200 or less followers who you feel deserve to be noticed

5. Let them know they have been chosen by leaving a comment on their blog.

Bonjour!

So since arriving back on the blogging scene I've realised I have some award catching up to do! And since these two awards are relatively similar what not do them together? Wow genius over here huh!

Thanks to the lovely Cerys-Eve over at One Brush Beauty for nominating me for the Liebster Award to take part in! Cerys-Eve has an awesome blog going on over there so you should definitely go check it out, if not just for her eyebrows, serious eyebrow envy going on here haha! they're fab.

The Rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you.

2. Include a link to their blog.

3. Select 15 new blog/bloggers you've recently discovered or follow regularly.

4. Nominate those bloggers for a Versatile Blogger Award, leave a link to their page and a comment on their latest post to let them know they've been nominated.

5. Tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

And thank you to the lovely Carrie from Carrie Brighton for tagging me in the versatile blogger award, been following Carries blog for quite sometime now and can really say she's just as lovely as her blog :) And thank you to Haley from Girl Meets Glamour World for nominating me too, just starting reading more of Haleys blog and she's so much fun to read! So please go and check them out, you won't regret it, I promise ;)

SO let's crack on with the 11 Randoms Facts about Moi: (7 facts for the Versatile blogger award)

1. I don't really like TV, I never get into TV shows and not the type to arrange my day/night around a TV programme or anything like that, if the TV's on it's just a bit of background noise in this household (especially if cléments got the football on).

2. My ALL TIME favourite dessert, ever, the only thing that claims that little space in my heart and earns the favourite dessert title is, lemon tart. Lemon meringue pie also qualifies, anything along the lines of a pie or tart with lemon, I'm gonna be on it like a car bonnet!

3. Even though I live in France, a place of tea's and coffee, I always go down to my local Irish store to stock up on "Barrys Gold Blend" Irish tea, god knows what would happen if there was no barrys tea in the flat, all hell would break loose thats what!

4. I am easily addicted to games on my iphone, once it's downloaded and I've played non-stop for an hour, I'm a goner. You'll be lucky to hold a conversation with me whilst the gaming action is commencing. Yes, I am a victim to the new Candy Crush, and I need help!

5. I don't wear make-up every single day, or sometimes maybe a few days. If I haven't got anywhere to go or even if I have, I think what the hell! Sometimes it's so much effort to put all my make-up on to go grocery shopping, who am I trying to impress, pineapples?

6. I haven't got a ton of friends, I found school really hard growing up and struggled to "fit-in" as I was super shy, even though I'm still kinda shy, I've a couple of really close friends I met when I was really young who have stuck by me through thick and thin and that's good enough for me.

7. I have a French Bulldog and she is my baby, even if she farts ALOT, she makes these really cute noises when she's tired and wants to get comfy so I jut can't help but love her.

8. If I could just win the lottery I would buy a plane ticket tomorrow to travel the world and high tail it outta here! I'm always itching to go new places and see the world, it's the romantic and spontaneous side of me.

9. I would love to own my own little shop or café, selling all home baked cakes and treats (lemon tarts hehe) and life would just be perfect.

10. I love candles, I could never get enough of them, if anyone ever wants to buy me presents, they can never go wrong with candles! I got these beautiful smelling candles for Christmas from cléments parents and ohh emm geee do they smell guuurd.

11. Daisies are my favourite flower, I will love anything with a daisy design, clothes, shoes, earrings, cups, wallpaper, anything!

Now for Cerys-Eves questions!

What made you start blogging?

I started blogging after I watched beauty youtubers for awhile and started reading a lot of beauty blogs, even though I'm not ready to make any youtube videos I still love to make blog posts, taking nice photos and spending time talking and sharing with other like minded people.

2. Whats your guilty pleasure?

Oh gosh I have tooo many, when I think of guilty pleasure it's always food, food is my weakness. What better feeling is there than indulging in a big mac meal with fries, and oh yes it's the large meal we're talking about here, go big or go home haha!

3. What brand could you not live without?

Ohhh interesting question, I guess I couldn't live without Bourjois, they are a bit hit and miss sometimes with their products, but I think on the whole they are a really good brand and I love the packaging too.

4. If you were an animal what animal would you be and why?

I would be a biiiiird, flying freeeee!

5. If you could only carry 3 makeup items in your bag what would they be and why?

Foundation, powder and mascara. Those are the essentials in my books, powder because I have oily-ish skin and if I don't powder I can just say goodbye to my foundation during the day! And mascara because my eyes look dull and tired without it.

6. Liquid or pencil liner?

Uhhhm, Gel! I really love the Maybelline gel liner so I'd have to choose that. But between liquid and pencil I'd go with pencil because I make such a mess when it comes to liquid liner, epic fail every time.

7. Is there any where that you would really love to travel to?

YES! New Zealand, I don't know why but it's been a destination on my mind for a long time, I just heard that the people are really laid back and that it has beautiful landscape, so I'm all up for that! Somebody take me? please?

8. Favourite book and why?

I really loved The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, and that whole trilogy, but my favourite is still the first, I don't know why with the rape and everything but the whole story of this misunderstood girl who is super intelligent and bad ass just really made me love Lisbeth the main character.

9. What is your classic look?

I go with a nude eye, just heavy on the mascara on the top eyelashes, pink cream blush on the cheeks and a pinky-nude lip. All very plain!

10. Highend or Budget products and why?

Budget for me, I do like to indulge in a few high end products when the budget allows, but my make up definitely contains more drug store brands because over-all I like going in and rooting around those products more.

11. Every cloud has a silver lining...true or false?

I sure hope so!

I feel like every blog I read has already done the lovely Liebster award sooooooo, if anyone is reading this and hasn't been nominated for it, I nominate YOU! Yup that's right, taking rules into ma own hands here and nominating any new bloggers on the scene to join on in here and do the following questions, please leave a comment if you decide to do it!

1. What is one of your talents that you are secretly proud of and like to do?

2. Do you have any funny hobbies like stamp collecting that not many people know you do?

3. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life what would it be?

4. Are you a home bird or do you like lots of change and travel?

5. If I told you that I put 1000 euros/pounds in your bank what would you use it for?

6. Can you play any musical instruments?

7. What was a nickname given to you by family/friends and why?

8. Is there any childhood thing you did that lasted a little too long (watching cartoons, etc) that perhaps you secretly still love?

9. What is your favourite film and why?

10. If you could speak another language, what would it be?

11. When your not blogging, what is your other favourite past-time?

That's it for the Liebster award, now onto my nominees for the Versatile Blogger Award Ohhhhhh ! ;)

Katy Giggles and Make up

Stephanie Stephanie's Style Blog

Shona Shona Lou xo

Emma-Kate Handpicked Beauty

Nadja Throw Me Something Beautiful

Sophie Daydreams & Style

Ellie The Beauty Cave

Gabriëlle The Last Broken Road

K Lee Kiss Kiss by K.Lee

Megan The Beauty Pier

Charlotte Black and White Sheep

Lexii Lexii's Lovable Lifestyle

Michel Burst with Envy

Chrisitie Christie Mariee

Sasha Beyond my Make up

I hope everyone I nominated has fun doing this too! See you in my next post!

Oh hi there! I'm back........:) (Update!)

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:14:00 +0000

Golly gosh it's been awhile huh! *awkward silence* I kind of disappeared off the scene there just as I got to my 100 followers which was completely unintentional, I'm sorry! I feel like I should write a big explanation to you guys of what happened there in that little blip. But I guess life just got in the way there for a bit. Losing my grandad and dad in the last 6 months has been a bit rough to say the least so my love for my blog got put on the back burner as I really didn't feel up to it for awhile. But here I am, back again with lots more posts to come! I guess we all need a break now and again ey?

I'd also like to congratulate the winner of my giveaway Rebecca! And to thank everyone who entered and who left comments on their spring favourites. I loved reading them all and it's given me some inspiration to branch out a bit this Spring! The days are getting longer, the sun is getting warmer, it's time to get Spring into full swing here, I hope you'll all be coming along with me on this blog adventure over here on A Bit OF Lippy ;) see you in my next post!

100 FOLLOWERS GIVEAWAY! YAY!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 10:23:00 +0000

WOWEEE 100 Followers! I am so over the moon that 100 people enjoyed my blog enough to click that follow button. So as a little token of appreciation I couldn't help doing little giveaway to thank all of you for your support. I didn't really have any expectations when I started blogging but the amount of lovely people who have left such kind comments and supportive words have made every post worth while. So before I start to go all soppy on you guys, here's how you can enter for the Maybelline Orange Twist goodies!

When I saw this and instantly thought it would make a really cute giveaway gift for one of you lucky ladies. The colours would be so pretty for Spring that I almost wanted to keep it for myself! Would love whoever wins this to do a little review of the products or a little Orange Twist make up look on their blog :) I have been so tempted to open it but I promise you I haven't!

All you have to do is be a follower via Google Friend Connect, you can get extra points to be within more of a chance to win with the other options below.

It's very important you leave your email, GFC name and your blog address so I can contact the lucky winner.

The Pop Box Orange Twist includes

Crayon Oriental Eye Pencil in Black
Popstick Citrus Slice Lipstick
Tenue & Strong Orange Couture Nail Varnish

Terms and Conditions are all in the Entry Form below!

THIS IS AN INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY, everyone can do it!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

OOTD Spring in my step!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 14:12:00 +0000

Afternoooon blog friends!

I posted my first little H&M haul yesterday, and I was so excited about wearing some of the pieces that todays post has turned into an OOTD, another first for me! *note newbie awkward posing pictures* Who knew it was so hard to photo an outfit? I am such an awkward poser, as soon as I started to over think where to position my hands, I knew this was going to be tricky.

awkward selfie with bed shot included

Mint Blouse - H&M

Mint and Lilac Cable Knit - H&M

Jeans - NAFNAF

Socks - H&M

Tennis shoes - H&M

Necklace -H&M

I love the style of having your necklace popping out from under your collar. I've seen a few fashionistas doing it, and I thought i'd like a slice of that necklace-collar action myself! I love the gold and mint together, match made in heaven!

Gold bobble studs - Part of a pack of 18 from H&M

Little diamond studs - a gift from a local jewelry shop

Makeup

Sephora Smoothing Primer

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in number 51

Rimmel Stay Matte powder

Sephora Eyebrow Pencil in blonde

Maybelline Dream Touch Blush in Berry

Bourjois Rouge Edition lipstick in rose millésime
Maybelline 24hr Colour Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze
Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes masacara in black

And it wouldn't be complete without the feet shot! really love these shoes, I've been wearing them all day and they're sooo comfy, nearly like I'm not wearing shoes at all! It's a nice change from being in boots all winter. Definitely have a little spring in my step in these!

Do you like whats in H&M for this Spring? Do you have an outfit post on your blog I can go see? Leave all your lovely linkies below! :)

See you soon !

H&M Haul !

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 21:35:00 +0000

Bonjour tout le monde!

Hope you're all well :)

Today I did a naughty little bit of shopping in H&M. I live in quite a small-ish town in France and there's not that many clothes shops here, so when H&M opened up here last weekend I couldn't help be over excited. So today I popped by to see what was in for this Spring, and everything was eye candy!

I got this lovely little necklace that I had my eye on as soon as I stepped in the shop, it has a hammered effect which is lovely as it reflects the light. It's really beautiful with the blouse below too. I also got these stud earring because I always lose studs, or at least one of them and never have a matching pair, a bit like my socks really. So I'm surely going to have one pair matching out of this lot. I'm wearing the smallest pearl ones right now and they are so dainty and cute.

This blouse is such a pretty colour, I'd call it a mint green and it's a really flattering shape on the body. The material falls and drapes beautifully and is very feminine. I think I'm going to go a bit mint crazy now for this Spring because I've missed nice pastel colours over winter, wearing black has got a tad little boring by this stage. I love the detailing of the gold on the pockets too, and how the buttons down the middle are hidden with the overlay of material at the seam (a year of fashion design really makes me pay attention to detail these days!)

I'm a total sucker for cutesy socks with designs on them like these ones below. I'm not sure if i'll ever grow out of having bicycles, bumble bees or cute hearts on my socks. If everything about my outfit is quite plan I can just look down at my cute colourful socks and it makes me happy (I'm so sad haha!).

I love having little tennis shoes to knock around in over Spring and Summer, I didn't try these on until I got home and they are surprisingly comfy for a €10 pair of shoes! I have quite wide feet at the top so I find it hard sometimes to squeeze my toes into shoes with very narrow tops. So now you have the low-down on my enormous clown feet I think we can move on!

I wasn't sure about these chinos at first when I tried them on, but after a little convincing from Clément I thought I'd chance them and so glad I did now! These are really lovely trousers for the Spring, and with a cute t-shirt or top tucked in with the pumps, it makes a really cute casual Spring outfit.

I really love this jumper on its own and over the mint green blouse above. It's a beautiful combination of lilac and mint green and I just love cable knit jumpers in general so this one was hard to resist. I'm really excited to wear this one over Spring with some jeans, a little bun in my hair and some sunnies! Bring on the sunshine is what I say!

I'm really sorry I couldn't link everything I bought here because I couldn't find it on the H&M website. And I also hope you don't take this as bragging, I really enjoy reading hauls personally whether they are make up or clothes so I really hope you enjoyed this one too.

Have you had a little splurge recently? Are you excited for all the Spring clothes coming in the shops?

I'd love to hear from you, please leave all your lovely blog linkies and comments below :)

Toodlepip!

NOTD Going Dotty?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:28:00 +0000

Hello blog beauties!

I dabbled in a little bit of nail art today and was very pleasantly surprised with how it turned out. This is a rather rare occasion for me because I'm so plain when it comes to nails and most of all, impatient. So the blogger in me got the camera out to capture this mani miracle!

I normaly spend very little time on my nails, sitting still for ten minutes for the whole thing to dry is impossible for me. By the time I've finished trying to put on my jacket, scratch that itch on my nose, trying to open something with the most awkward of packaging, my nails are completely smudged and ruined. Then comes out my bottle of Bourjois 1 Second nail varnish remover (the one you just dip in your finger and it comes off, love this stuff!) and in my annoyance I take the whole thing back off and make my way out the door in a big huff. Although, if you ask me to sit down and paint your nails to make them all pretty I would be happy to do so! It's just with my own it all goes wrong.

So I had some time to spend on my nails today, and to relax myself into it I put a few drops of lavender oil onto my wrists to make the whole experience a little more therapeutic than usual. And the lavender oil must have worked because for once I sat there and waited!

I used three of my Mavala nail varnishes for this nail look today. South Beach Pink, Violet Diamond and the Strong, Flexible top coat. I went about my usual routine, two coats of pink and then a quick coat of the mavala top coat and that would be me done. But not today! I seen this look on Vivianna Does Makeup blog where she done it in very beautiful nude colour and gold glitter, if memory serves me well! And I loved how pretty it looked on her nails. I don't wear glitter nail varnish that often because it's such a pain to remove but this is such a nice way to use it!

To do the dots I used the threading end of a sewing needle, dipped it into my glitter polish and dotted it carefully onto each nail. You can obviously do this with a dotting tool which would be less risky than poking a needle onto your nail! Or even a cocktail stick or hair pin would be good for this too. After it had dried I then applied the top coat and it was finished! Super easy and a bit more interesting than just plain nails. If you try to recreate this look please leave a link so I can see your lovely nails.

What nail art have you tried lately? Do you enjoy doing your nails or prefer someone else to do them? What colour are you wearing today? I'd love to hear from you as always!

See you soon!

A Bit Of Lippy? Bourjois Rouge Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 19:59:00 +0000

Hello Lovelies!

Boy am I excited to share this one with you today! My most favourite things to purchase are lipsticks, they're so pretty and feminine, and what can I say, wearing lippy just makes me feel like a laaadyyy. Flashbacks of stealing your mums lipsticks and high heels to be "a grown up" anyone? This is how I feel when I put on a new lipstick, the same excitement of dressing up with my mums clothes when I was little and suddenly feeling like I'm a real lady. Ready to go drink tea out of china cups and do other related important things that a lady must do. Let me introduce you to the Bourjois Rouge Edition lipsticks, anything which has french words in the title is already chic in my book.

Bourjois Rouge Edition Lipstick in number 17 Rose millésime

Word of warning ladies! If you light a candle to add extra ambiance *says in french accent* to your lipstick photo shoot, watch your hair! Leaning over to take photos over the candle resulted in me singeing my fringe! not a good free hair cut I can tell you that much.

Anyway back to the matter in hand here, these lipsticks are a real delight! I'm so happy with the colour I picked up "Number 17 Rose Millésime". I'm probably making this up here, but I'd describe it as a peachy rose pink. It's super soft on the lips and feels hydrating and leaves a beautiful sheen. My lips are a bit dry at the moment but this didn't make it any worse, it was really lovely to wear. So lets talk staying power, as with a lot lip products this doesn't last through eating or drinking. I'd say it would last a good hour or two and then you'd need to go in and touch up. But who doesn't enjoy putting more lipstick on? I know its one of my favourite hobbies anyway! This is a really flattering colour against the skin too, subtly brightening and feminine.

The Bourjois comes in 19 gorgeous colours, it was so hard to chose! Definitely going to pick up more of these, I'd rate them 10/10. I picked mine up from my local Nocibé here in France for €12.

Have you tried the new Bourjois Rouge Edition yet? What's your favourite lipstick right now? Please leave your comments below :) I love to read them!

Toodles!

FOTD Bronze Eye, Burgundy Lip

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 21:33:00 +0000

Bonjour tout le monde!

Here is a little make up I was wearing today, it's the classic bronze eye that's so easy to wear with any lip colour and this burgundy lip stain that I love from Revlon. I'm sorry that my Friday tutorials have gone out the window a little, I think I'll post a tutorial when I'm feeling inspired or trying something new. But there definitely will be more!

This make up is very easy, I used only one eyeshadow brush to apply three colours from the Kiko palette below and applied the Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes just to my upper lashes. Im really enjoying just upper lash mascara lately, you don't have to worry about it dropping under the eye during the day and the effect is still opens the eyes. Then a little bit of L'oreal Le Blush, I use this colour just under my cheekbones for definition and a little dab of highlight onto the tops of me cheekbones. Then a little bit of the Revlon lip stain and it's complete!

Products used for this look:

Kiko Colour Seduction eyeshadow palette in 01 Sumptuous Mocha
L'oreal Le Blush in rose nude/nude pink
Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel Foundation in number 52
Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion
Sephora eyebrow pencil in blond
Make Up Forever Uplight Face Luminizer Gel
Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer in beige
Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Crush
Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes Mascara in Black
Sephora foundation Brush
Galerie La Fayette eyeshadow brush
Bourjois Powder brush

What's your make up look today? Do you like a burgundy lip? Please leave your comments below, I really love to read them :)

A bientot!

Disappointing Products #1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 16:51:00 +0000

Hey Guys!

Sorry that this is going to be a bit of negative post today, but there's nothing worse than buying make up to find yourself disappointed when you get home right? Here are two products that failed to live up to my expectations. The Bourjois 123 Perfect Foundation and the Revlon Colorstay Smoky Shadow Stick in Atomic. These are just my opinions on these products, and they might work great for you! I'd really love to know if you've used either of these and your thoughts too. I don't like hatin' on products as Bourjois and Revlon are two of my favourite brands. But ya gotta do what ya gotta do ey!

Bourjois 123 Perfect Foundation in number 52

Revlon ColorStay Smoky Shadow Stick in Atomic

So i'll start off with the Bourjois 123 Perfect Foundation. It claims to give a"Flawless complexion, even to perfection", "second skin, melting texture". And here how it claims to do this:

This foundation contains 3 correcting pigments

Yellow pigments for anti-dark circles
Mauve pigments for anti-dull complexion
Green pigments for anti-redness.

So here I was, foundation brush in hand, all was going well, this was a lovely texture on my skin, wasn't as nice smelling as the other Bourjois Foundations I thought but hey that's not so bad. Then I noticed it was doing what we all don't want a foundation to do, caking. I learnt quickly that if I was going to use this I'd have to apply with my fingers for a thinner layer, but that still doesn't solve the next problem.

After I applied this colour which I thought was a good match for my skin. 15-20 minutes later this had oxidized like no other! Looks nice and pale in the bottle? nope I'm sorry Bourjois but this was just, orange. I got the lightest colour in the shop which was 52 but this really isn't going to match any pale ladies like myself. Then it started to do another thing which isn't on my tick list for foundations, it was a matte finish. This isn't a bad thing if you like matte finishes but it wasn't stated on the bottle, and I do prefer a dewy look to the skin. And as an "anti-dull complexion" foundation, with this matte finish and off colour my skin did just look really dull. As you could probably tell things were going down hill for this foundation.

starts off nice

Now I have used this about 5/6 times on me to give it a fair trial but every time I'm still not loving it. It's a real shame because the bottle is quite nice and Bourjois is normally great with their formulas like the Bourjois Healthy Mix foundation which I loved and used up completely. I'd really love to hear though if this worked for you because with products like foundations, everyones skin is different so it's quite hard to judge too harshly.

Dries matte and this picture doesn't pick up how orange this really is compared to my hand

Next in the line up is the Revlon ColorStay Smoky Shadow Stick in Atomic. I bought this a good while ago now when the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable lip stains had appeared and I was just going a bit stick crazy I guess! I don't know why I got it in this colour either which is a khaki green and gold, while the gold is okay the green doesn't do much for my green eyes.

This is the most I've been disappointed with a product for while. While the colours swatch really lovely it really didn't translate for me when it came to applying them on my eyes. While the gold colour isn't totally unusable the green really isn't for me. Putting this on my eye and then trying to blend it just doesn't work, it's really patchy and just made my eyelid into a dirty-green-not-very-nice colour. I don't know if I'm using these wrong or if it really just isn't all that great but every time I use it, I just take it straight back off again.

When trying to blend the two together it just doesn't look nice either, they don't blend seamlessly and overall it's just hard to work with to get a nice result. Then what was really annoying was that after I used it once the green shadow fell out of the stick, so now it's even more awkward to try and use when it keeps falling out. Overall this just wasn't my cup of tea and I haven't been back to purchase it in anymore colours.

Phew! That was a lot of negativity there, got to go shake that off now! I'd really love to hear if you had a different experience with either of these products, or even if like me you were disappointed too please leave your comments below, I love to read them x

See you soon!

Frizzy Hair? Don't Dispair! John Frieda has the answer

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:46:00 +0000

Hello there Madames et Monsieurs!

I'm kicking my bum back into gear today and jumping onto the frizzy hair bandwagon. Say hello to Frizz-Ease Extra Strength Formula by the man himself, John Frieda.

Before I go on about this little beaut of product I'll tell you a little about my hair type and you can see if this is for you. I have thiiick hair, and a lot of it, it's just to my shoulders but it's not easy to manage. I have naturally very curly/frizzy short hair around my hairline and the nape of my neck, which never grows more than a few inches (genetics ey!). This is something every hair dresser I've been to likes to point out "you have very short hair here don't you!?" Mhmm, lady I know. So these are the main parts which I have to tackle after a shampoo and condition.

John Friedas Extra Strength Hair Serum has helped me on my mission to fight the frizz for a loooong time now (as in years), so it deserves an honourable mention on my blog. This is a go to hair product for me and dare I say, Holy Grail? This serum is said to block frizz, instantly replenish coarse, wiry frizzy hair into more polished and shiny locks. It contains a UV filter and is a blend of silicones infused with Algar extract and Silk protein to leave dry hair soft and healthy so it's more easy to manage. Amen to that!

I like to apply this straight after I get out of the shower, I pump a large pea sized amount onto the tips of my fingers, rub them together and then pull my fingers through my wet hair starting with the problem areas. I then usually blow dry my hair and when it's about half way dry I stop and leave it to finish drying naturally. I literally can't count how many bottles of this stuff I have gone through, I'm currently halfway through this one and will, as always, go to repurchase once it's run out. I seriously panic once this starts to get low or if I forget it when I'm travelling because I know how much it helps my hair. I also use it after I've styled my hair with hair straighteners or anything thats dried out my hair. I take a small blob on my hands again and run it through the dry patches and ends of my hair for extra shine. I would highly recommend this product to anybody looking for a good serum and remedy for frizzy hair.

I also think it's a great price for how long it lasts, usually around the 7-8 euro mark, you can find it online here. So there you have it, we can now all go on our frizz free journey and thank Mr. Frieda for saving the day!

Do you have any hair treatments that you find work great to fight the frizz? Have you tried out this product and liked it? I'd love to hear from you ! x

See you soon!

Valentines & Weekend in Paris Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 13:24:00 +0000

Hey Guys!

How was your weekend? :)

Sorry that it's been a bit quiet on my blog the past few days, I thought I'd put a little collage together of some snaps I took over the weekend and Valentines. Hope you all had a lovely Valentines and that you spoiled yourselves and had a little me time pamper. Any excuse to have flowers, chocolate strawberries and an extra long bath with candles is always a good day. There should be more of these Valentines days if you ask me!

I really wanted to post a Valentines make up look, but I'm going to be honest and say I didn't even wear make-up on Valentines day. We decided on making a meal at home and just relax so staying in my pyjamas with no make-up on was perfect for my lazy side. Things were more exciting when we went to visit Cléments parents for the weekend. We decided to go for a stroll around Paris and take in a little more of this enchanting city rather than me dragging Clément into every Sephora and Zara in sight, only window shopping this time! (which was pretty hard to resist I have to say).

I love the buzz of a big city like Paris, the hustle and bustle and the interesting characters you see, the buskers in the Metro and all the colourful languages you can hear around you. For once I don't feel like such a foreigner in France, which I sometimes feel in a smaller place like Saint-Quentin (the cashier at the supermarket looked at me like she never saw an english person in her life last week when she said "YOU ENGLISH?!" in total surprise when I went to pick up a few groceries, this gave me a little chuckle when I came home and told Clément).

Hope you enjoy this little snap shot into my weekend, my favourite photo is of course Holly sitting like a human on the sofa, she gets into those positions herself too! I can tell she's going to be a funny character when she's fully grown.

I'd love to hear how was your weekend and Valentines :) I know I'm only half way but I'm excited to say i'll have a little give away if I get to 100 followers, so keep your eyes peeled for that!

See you soon!

Wishing on a star....Wish List #1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 13:48:00 +0000

Hello fellow beauty addicts! Here is the start of what will definitely be a never ending wish list.... but a girl can dream though right? Starting a beauty blog doesn't help with these cravings when you're seeing so many great reviews and then that little voice in your head starts to say, "yes you really need this! imagine how amazingly soft your lips would be, imagine that salon styled hair at home!". These even find their way into my dreams at night. Yes I definitely had a dream that I was creating beautiful waves in my hair last night with the Babyliss Big Hair. Then to only wake up to the tangled mop that was really there. I can hold my hands up and say I'm a Beauty Addict.

Some of these things will be no stranger to you as they've been around the beauty blogosphere for quite sometime. Like the Nars Orgasm blush and Laguna Bronzer. These were a huge hit for Nars and probably after realising this they have a compact for the two! be still my beating heart... this is so so tempting.

Never owning a Mac product of any sort I'm not really in the know when it comes to all their lippies. This Mac Diva lipstick really grabbed my attention while I was flicking through Hellocotton the other day. A make up artist called Sasha had created such a beautiful look with this on her blog, that it instantly went onto my wish list.

Being really bored with my hair lately and always trying to recreate that at home salon feeling with my hair, the Babyliss Big Hair caught my eye like no other hair gadget has. A rotating brush combined with a hair dryer? Genius! I've never been talented when it comes to styling my hair. It's washed and blow dried in any old fashion and I'll accept whatever shape has happened in the process. But this really looks like it could be the answer to salon styled hair at home. And cuts out the really damaging part of hair straighteners!

So lately I've been a bit lost with foundations, finding it so hard to have one that works for my skin and doesn't make me look dull or off colour. So I started to roll back the clock and thought of what foundations used to serve me well. And the only one that stood out in my mind was the Rimmel Recover foundation in Ivory. This was discontinued in a lot of shops like Boots and Superdrug where I would go to buy it, and at the time accepted that it had gone and that I needed to move onto another foundation. Only to recently find out that you can indeed still find it! Ebay will be my best option to get my hands on this, and it's so cheap as well, around 4-5 euros.

While I'm not thinking of makeup I will probably be thinking of food, and other tasty treats. The Lush Bubblegum lip scrub has been floating around over blogs for sometime now too and with this winter weather, I think I can justify a little tasty lip scrub for my dry lips.

The Body Shop is one of my favourite places to go to find body butters like the Shea Body Butter I have in my wish list. I've just ran out of mine and this is really the best product for soft skin that I've ever tried. I am quite lazy when it comes to moisturising, but when I do, my skin is at its softest and happiest with this product.

So last but not least are these two beauts from Zara. If you read my "about me" post you will know I'm slightly addicted to this place. Poor Clément knows I am anyway since I drag him into every one I see if we're out shopping. It just makes me happy to go into Zara and browse through their beautiful collections even if I'm not buying. This "Nous et Vous" jumper caught my eye on their website, a casual light cream jumper with cute french writing that can be paired up with anything? Perfect. And a gorgeous geometric necklace too? these lovely pieces speak for themselves.

Whats on your wish list at the moment? Do you own any of these and like them?

I love to hear from you and appreciate every comment and moment spent reading my blog :)

See you soon !

Runway Nails. Spring Trend 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 16:40:00 +0000

After admiring my purple pearl nail varnish by Mavala this week, it got me wondering what were the Spring nail trends for 2013. And to my surprise a purple metallic look was on the cards for this Spring! Never being one for following trends but just wearing what I like I was a little secretly happy I was "on trend" for once, even if only on my nails. This trend was on the runway at the Erin Fetherston show as she described her collection to be inspired by “Sultry, unfussed glamour.” Here are a few photo's of her collection this Spring.

As you can see in the bottom right photo the model is wearing a gorgeous metallic violet colour which is said to be the Butter London Nail Laquer in the colour Lillibet's Jubilee (find here!). I couldn't believe that my Mavala Shimmer Violet was almost exactly the same, what a great dupe! The Mavala varnish is beautiful but is terrible for chipping, so I'd really recommend having a strong top coat to make it last. I really love how this colour catches the light, the shimmer is just beautiful! And I have to say a big thank you to my friend +Alice C. who bought this for me for Christmas. She's just started her english blog here where you can find great reviews and posts!

Have you got a shimmery violet nail varnish that you love too? Or would you like to try out this colour for Spring? Don't forget to leave your blog links below too so I can check them out :)

Happy Sunday!

Katie xxx

Nars Andy Warhol Flowers Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 09:07:00 +0000

Hey everyone!

Here is the super easy Nars Andy Warhol Flowers palette tutorial that I promised on Wednesday after my review on this product, and I'm a woman of my word! I hope you like it :) (please excuse my brows)

My eyes haven't been primed just foundation has been applied all over the lid. You can do this look before you do your foundation as there is some fallout along the way (I use my foundation brush to brush away any fallout). I always do my foundation first out of habit though, its just how I roll! I used only one standard eyeshadow brush for this look, I always see the professionals using multiple brushes for blending and what-not but it really wasn't difficult just using the one.

So let's get down to business! First I have applied the pink champagne colour all over the lid, patting it onto the centre of my lid and then blending it out along the socket line of my eye and as my guide I stop blending just about where my eyebrow ends.

Then I take a very small amount of the dark brown colour of the palette onto the brush, you can always go more intense later if it's not enough. I place the brush onto the outer part of my eye, gently bringing this colour about three quarters of the way in. But not to the very corner of my eye, I want to keep this part of the eye nice and bright. I then bring it under the eye just about half way along the lash line. Keep blending these two colours until there are no harsh lines.

Dark brown

dark brown and champagne blended

This is the part I love, applying the beautiful purple grey shadow as it makes this eye make-up a little more interesting than a bronze eye look. The grey detail on the top fades once you start to use this colour and you're left with the purple grey colour underneath. I blend this colour directly on top of that dark brown shadow and bring it slightly higher towards the brow and again under the eye.

Purple/Grey

champagne, dark brown and purple grey blended

We're nearly done! Making sure there is no purple left on the brush (I use the back of my hand to take off any excess colour from the brush) take a small amount of the white eyeshadow and brush it along the brow bone just to add a beautiful highlight . I take a little bit more of the white and add it to the inner corner to brighten that area and just underneath the eye to where the purple and brown end to make it seamless.

white

champagne, dark brown, purple grey and white highlight

Give those lashes a lick of mascara and hey presto! you're done! you could make this look more intense by adding a black eye pencil to the water line or a liquid or gel liner along the upper lash line, the worlds your oyster! I hope this wasn't to hard to follow and if you try this out with this palette or with similar colours of your own, please leave a link because I would love to see :)

Finished look!

Sorry for the poorly lit photo, I didn't know whether to include a full face picture of the look and I took this picture later in the day so I didn't have any natural light. But you can kind of see how it looks with the rest of the makeup. I didn't do anything special with the rest of my make-up, I wore the Bourjois lipgloss I talked about in the natural everyday look post and a rose nude/nude pink blush in the colour 125 which is very subtle by L'oreal which is just called "Le Blush" and comes with a little brush to apply, very handy!

"ALL IS PRETTY" Quote from Andy Warhol on the mirror of the palette

Don't forget to leave all your links below so I can check out all your lovely blogs :) You can find this Andy Warhol Flowers Palette in Sephora here.

See you soon!

Katie xxx

Valentines Day Picks

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 12:17:00 +0000

So as that international day of luuuurve is drawing closer and since I love Valentines day I had do to a little blog lovin' post of my own to share the little cute things I have found over the web.

I love browsing through the web to find cute crafty ideas or just pretty things to look at around Valentines day. I think it's a day we can share with everybody close to our hearts, not to just our loved one but to our family and friends too. I know sometimes when I was single and I dreaded that V-Day coming around and wishing I had someone special to share it with. But having a total girly day with your friends can be just as special and fun. Painting pretty nails, drinking too much hot chocolate and going to the cinema to watch a rom-com (I'm a sucker for a good romantic comedy) sounds like a nice way to spend Valentines to me. When I was younger my mam used to give me cute cards for Valentines and it always made me smile. Even this year I will be sending cute love cards to my friends and family to let them know I'm thinking of them even if I'm far away.

So today is a little post to share with you guys but to also thank you for all your lovely comments and support and for clicking that follow button, it really means a lot and touches my heart when I read the kind things you say. Here are all the lovely things I found along my Valentines internet travels.....

Tea of Hearts: I found this last week on the lovely Melissas blog which you can find here where she explains with lovely step by step photo's on how to make these cute love teabags. Being a total tea junkie I instantly thought these were the cutest things I've ever seen. Making a cup of tea with one of these would instantly lift my spirits.

Love heart book marks: I found this photo on Pinterest and thought what a simple yet lovely idea! I think they would make really nice presents for all your bookworm friends I know I would love one of these myself. Just need to get down to the DIY store and sneak all of their colour cards into my bag!

Burgundy Hat: This cute little hat is from H&M and you can find it here. I love the style of this hat and think it could add something really sweet to an outfit. There is a black and light pink version of this hat in H&M too.

Frida Girl Heart Earrings: These earrings are so pretty and I love the lavender colour of the heart. And they are on sale! Down to $25, Baragin! Click here to find out more.

Lipstick Art: I found this really cool idea from a blog called A Beautiful Mess by two ladies Elsie and Emma who share DIY ideas and recipes. You can find out here how to create your very own Lipstick art piece, I know I will definitely be making this and hanging it in my bedroom!

Heart Eye Makeup: This is another Pinterest find, and even if impracticle to wear, it's so beautiful and creative that I really wanted to include this picture, maybe you could wear this as the love monster next halloween?!

Gold Heart Ring: This ring is for sale on Etsy, it costs just $9.75 and is 14k gold. Why not treat yourself this Valentines? Looks so delicate and dainty on her hands. Find it here

Heart Patch Jumper: I'm a huge fan of elbow patches, I think they're a cool detail to jazz up both mens and womens jumpers. So I love the idea of having heart patches! This picture was from Pinterest but I found a little DIY post on how to create those patches here by Erica :)

I hope you enjoyed this post and would love to hear if you have any crafty ideas of your own for this Valentines or if you done any Valentines posts please leave a link for me to check them out :)

À bientôt!

Katie xxx

Nars Andy Warhol Flowers Palette 3

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 21:39:00 +0000

I'm really excited to be talking about this product today, as it was very kindly offered to me as a surprise from Cléments mum last weekend and it's my first ever Nars product! Before I start to waffle on in total excitement, I'll talk about the idea of this product.

This flower palette is one of three in a special limited edition collection inspired by the artist Andy Warhol and his flower prints. The colours of each palette are as follows;

Flower 1 white, pink brown, lavender and dark lavender gray shine.
Flower 2 white, blue and gray heather bright lavender.
Flower 3 white, pink champagne, dark brown and lavender-grey shine.

swatches from left to right: lavender/grey, dark brown, pink champagne, white

I think this is such an amazing idea and it's like having a little Andy Warhol art in your make-up bag! It's so beautifully presented in the Nars rubbered packaging with the classic Nars and Andy Warhol written in silver instead of the usual white lettering. The design is so exact to the prints it really has been done with a lot of attention to detail. On each of the palettes there is a different quote of Andy Warhol engraved onto the mirror, with "All is pretty" on the Flowers 3, it didn't pick up to well in this photo though unfortunately. Inside the silver box there is a little booklet of Andy Warhols art and quotes and a "Get The Look" guide to tell you where each of the shades are applied. There are so many other possible ways to wear these eyeshadows too so let your imagination go wild, this is your palette and you are the artist!

These shadows are really like nothing I've tried before where blending comes in. They blend together so well on the eye that I enjoyed using them and felt really good wearing this make-up. The colours themselves are just gorgeous, the champagne and purple/grey being my favourites but really they are all gorgeous. The purple/grey shadow really adds something extra to this palette rather than it just being another bronze palette. Overall I would really recommend getting your hands on one of these as they are limited addition in Sephora.

I will soon post a tutorial on this palette so check back for that!

See you guys soon!

Katie xxx

Over the Taupe ! NOTD

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 19:59:00 +0000

All photos are from Pinterest except the Nail Varnish

Over the taupe is this beautiful chic warm colour that I've just been loving lately. Taupe nail varnish is no stranger to a ton of celebrities and fashion houses where this gorgeous trend started, the Chanel runway.

This earthy mushroom colour says sophistication as an elegant evening nail varnish but with a white shirt and a chunky knit makes a beautiful daywear nail varnish. It compliments so many styles, wearing it with deep blues, popping pink, to pastels and of course khaki tones, this colour is so versatile you'll be asking yourself why havn't I got this sooner? It's so easily over-looked with so many beautiful bright colours to choose from, but this is now one of my nail essentials. You can find this OPI "Over The Taupe " here or if you want to splash out on the Chanel varnish you can find the beautiful Le Vernis 505 Particuliere here.

Have you guys tried a taupe nail varnish yet?

Katie

xxx

Liebster Award!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 21:47:00 +0000

I feel so excited that I have been nominated for the Liebster Award by Carrie Brighten, thank you !

The Liebster Award is a lovely way of creating a community for new bloggers and those with less than 200 followers. Liebster in German means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome. Bloggers get to share facts about themselves, and also promote other blogs that they enjoy reading. It is an excellent way to find new blogs and make new friends!

The Rules:

The nominee must link back to the blogger who nominated them.
The nominee must state 11 facts about themselves, and then answer the 11 questions provided for them by the person who nominated them.
The nominee must then nominate bloggers with less than 200 followers, who they think deserve the recognition, and pose 11 new questions for them to answer.
They must then tell the bloggers who they have nominated about the award.

11 Facts About Me:

I can't fall asleep without rubbing my feet together for ages, it's the only thing that will relax me to sleep, does anyone else do this??
My dream is to work with animals, rescuing animals, owning my own dog salon but mostly to be a veterinarian assistant.
I never finish my cup of tea, I really don't like drinking the cold bit at the end
I have a dimple on my left cheek
I used to paint my dogs nails when I was little and push her around in a pram, poor Pepsi
I'm a really bad decision maker
I prefer a couple of drinks on a night in or a movie than a crazy night out any day
My favourite herb is Coriander, I go crazy for that stuff!
I like to do a spot of crochet in my spare time
I'm a really affectionate person, I love hugs but I'm sometimes too shy to initiate them
I can never leave my nails unpolished

My Questions from Carrie :)

1.Where is your favourite place to be?

In my bed with fresh covers on, after a bath in my comfy pj's, awww bliss!

2. If you had to wear the same outfit for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Jeans and cosy jumper and the necklace my mam got me for my 21st birthday

3. Which item in your make up bag can you not live without?

Aww this is hard! If I really had to chose it would be mascara, because my eyes look like two piss holes in the snow without it! haha

4. Favourite movie?

I don't really have a lot of favourite things because I don't like to limit myself to just one (really I just can't decide) but a film that I could watch over and over again is The Devil Wears Prada, I'm not sure why I love that so much, but I love Meril Streep in anything she's a brilliant actress.

5. What did you want to be when you grow up, when you were little?

I really can't remember what I wanted to be, probably a princess!

6. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

It's hard to but I'll say two places that come to mind, I would love to experience living in a place like New York but then on the other hand I'd love my own little pet farm in the country side with a vine yard and a beautiful old house in France.

7. Favourite place to shop?

ZARA! I am obsessed with that place, chic for cheap is what I say!

8. Mac or PC?

Mac :)

9. What is your favourite blog to read?

I love a lot of blogs at the moment so this is really hard to chose, so I'll do the blogs I'm looking at the most right now ^.^ I've cheated so much in these questions, I really am a bad decision maker! http://shakeshakee.blogspot.fr/ http://jellybonesblog.blogspot.fr/ and http://www.makeupsavvy.co.uk/

10. Who is your biggest inspiration in life?

My mam, I admire her so much

11. If you could be anyone in the history of the world for a day, who would you be?

I would love to be one of my ancestors to see where I came from and how life was back in those days.

And the nominees are......*drum roll*...

And my questions to you lovely ladies are:

What is a nickname that your friends or family call you and why?
Why did you start your blog? and what do you enjoy most from it?
What is one of your skills/talents that you're proud of?
What is your best childhood memory?
What is your favourite make-up brand and product from this brand?
What was the best holiday you've been on?
Whats your favourite website to browse?
Can you speak another language, if not what would you like to speak?
What was the last thing you purchased?
Whats the most embarrassing thing thats happened to you?
What would be your perfect day?

Can't wait to read all you responses! xxxx

Easy Everyday Make-up Routine

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 21:17:00 +0000

Hey everyone! As I promised, this is the start of Friday tutorials! To start with I thought I'd do something I know best, my everyday make-up look, it's super quick and easy, no need for hundreds of brushes or 5 different eye shadows. This look is simple, natural and it get's me through those days when I don't totally want to scare people in the street when I go bare face. This look is just to bring out your natural beauty instead of masking it :)

no make-up, argh!

Nivea Visage Day Cream for sensitive skin

It felt a little scary to put a picture up of myself with no make-up, but then I realized its not such a big deal. Every girl feels the same way, and there's nothing to feel bad about. Beauty comes from the kind things we do for others, and it's not measured in the amount of make-up I have on. I know that sounds a bit cheesy but I really do believe that. So lets embrace the naked face! You're all beautiful ladies :)

Sephora Eyebrow pencil in 01 blonde and Sephora foundation brush

This is one of the two brushes I use in this look, I bought it from Sephora and it's their own line of brushes. I have to say I absolutely love it, it might lose a hair now and then, but it's really soft against the skin and buffs in foundation lovely. As you can see I start in the centre of my face and I apply a pump on the back of my hand, sometimes two, and work my way from the centre to the hairline and jaw line so I'm not left with ny harsh edges.

Bourjois brush concealer in beige

Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in number 52

Here I've hidden those sexy under eye circles with Bourjois Healthy Mix brush concealer and tapped gently with my finger to blend. Next I fill in my brows, I havn't quite perfected them yet, and I desperately need an eyebrow palette because I'm currently using an eyebrow pencil and it's not exactly the right colour for me. So this is what I do for now to fill in places of my brows which are lighter than other parts. http://marthadoesmakeup.com/ has a great post on this, and has beautiful eyebrows herself so I'd really reccomend popping over there if your in need of some eyebrows help like me!

Rimmel Glam Eyes in 130 Tribute

I have then used my rimmel Glam Eyes all over the lid in this beautiful colour, it's a bronze colour with a purple under tone to it so it's beautiful for green and blue eyes. It's been in my make-up bag for so long and I totally forgot about it, then I popped it on one day and now I'm in love all over again! I used just a normal eye shadow brush that I bought from the Gallerie La Fayette, so any eye shadow brush is good for this. I lay the colour in the centre and outer part of my lid and then I gently blended it into the inner corner and up into the socket of my eye.

Lancome Hypnose Doll Eyes mascara

I use Lancome Doll eyes masacara to really open up my eyes and lengthen my lashes without clumping. The brush is just perfect! check out my January favourites where I mentioned this amazing product.

Maybelline Dream Touch blush number 05

Before I apply the lipgloss I take the tiniest dab of blush on my finger, apply it to the apples of my cheeks and then blend slightly upwards onto the cheekbone, if I think it's too much I use a finger with no product and blend a bit more until I have achieved a soft flushed look on the cheeks. (sorry I forgot to take a picture of this stage, forgive me!)

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder and Bourjois Powder Brush

I then go on to powder the centre of my face with Rimmels stay Matte powder with my powder brush by Bourjois. I love this powder, it does'nt leave any cakey effect to your foundation but keeps the places you want matte all day long!

Bourjois 3D Effect lip gloss in number 51

Swatches of Maybelline Touch Blush and Bourjois 3D effect lipgloss

Swatch of Rimmel Glam Eyes in 130 Tribute

This lip gloss by bourjois is really subtle and pretty for everyday wear. It does have a slightly sticky feeling to it, but its so glossy I just love it anyway and it only has the slightest pink pigment running through it so I think it's just so flattering on the lips.

And thats it! Easy as that! It's almost a no make-up make-up look, just a fresh and awake look for day to day. You can add your favourite product for lips with a more colour if you prefer than an almost total nude lip or you can just wear a yummy lip balm which I do most of the time! Hope you enjoyed this look. I'd love to know what are your everyday go-to products so please leave a comment! And if you have done an everyday make-up post I'd love to see so leave all your lovely blog links below!

Hope you have a great weekend everyone :) See you soon!

Katie xox

About me and Blog News!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 13:18:00 +0000

Hey beauties! After a few days of scouting out new blogs to read I realized I loved to read the "About me" section of peoples blogs. My first blog post just went straight into a nail varnish review and I rudely never introduced myself. So hopefully after this post you might get to know me a little bit better and for me to get to know you guys too! I'd love to read your blogs and your story so feel free to leave all your links below and I will check them all out.

My name is Katie Clarke, no middle names unfortunately, just Katie Clarke. I'm 21, Gemini, and was born in the UK but spent most of my life in Ireland so I'm always up for the "craic"! I have an older brother and sister and my gorgeous mam who is a mother and best friend.

Me and mam when I was just 4 years old, sporting my brown uniform and full fringe

I was a late bloomer for makeup, I never wore anything until I was 16 and at this point I was a bit of a rocker so I was experimenting with black liner and eye shadows and at the time thought I was pretty darn cool (I have many a picture which reinforces I definitely wasn't). I have never done any make-up course I just enjoy make-up and beauty care like many ladies out there so the aim of my blog is just to share and enjoy some beauty chit-chat.

I met my boyfriend Clément in my little town in Ireland and was instantly swept off my feet with his french charm. Sadly the whirl wind romance was cut short and we had to endure a long distance relationship for many many months. After I finished my fashion and art course I took the plunge and moved to France and I'm so glad I did!

Clément et moi when I was lucky enough to be taken to New York with him and his family, amazing memories <3

Et voila, this is where my story continues, I'm embracing the French culture, swapping my good ole Irish spuds (potatoes) and Guinness for croissants and baguettes. I'm a very proud new parent (I don't really like to say owner) of our little bouledogue francais Holly, she is just the cutest.

Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave your links below so I can read all your lovely blogs!

My best friend Alison since I was about 8/9 years old, missing her a lot in France :(

BLOG NEWS!

I have decided that I really want to have some structure to my blog, something to aim for every week and I will now be putting up a tutorial (hopefully!) every Friday. If you guys think a different day would be better please leave a comment! The tutorials will mainly be beauty related but I might spice it up once in awhile and if you guys want a tutorial on anything I'm open to all suggestions! In between the tutorials I will still be posting reviews etc frequently so don't forget to check back on those! See you soon!

Katie xox